Luis from Seward - Did you know one of Hollywood’s most celebrated Puerto Rican stars (Luis Guzman) lives on Grand Street?

ack in 1993, Luis Guzman portrayed an East Harlem gangster named Pachanga in Brian De Palma’s film “Carlito’s Way.” It was his breakthrough performance. But in real life it is way downtown that the veteran character actor spent his formative years. As visitors to the 51 year-old movie star’s MySpace page are informed, Loisaida is his hometown. And for those of you with a limited background in Nuyorican history, the term Loisaida is a Latino pronunciation of the Lower East Side. It was coined in the early 1970s by two Puerto Rican activists Chino Garcia and Bimbo Rivas, and refers to the area between the East Village and the Manhattan Bridge.”*

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